Damian Lillard’s MVP Odds Surge after Hot Start

The 2024 NBA All-Star Game will return to the traditional East vs. West format, ending a six-year run of captains drafting rosters. In a contest like this, it's really hard to predict which player will have a standout performance since there won't be much defense regardless of the scoreboard. Here's a look at our predictions for the All-Star Game…

For the first time since 2017, the NBA All-Star Game will go back to the Eastern Conference facing the Western Conference as the festivities take place in Indianapolis. The NBA experimented with two stars as captains and drafting teams the past six years, but the league has reverted back to the traditional conferences squaring off for this season's…

The Bucks, Celtics, Nuggets or Suns? Giannis, Luka, the Joker or Embiid? As the NBA gets set to kick off on Tuesday with two marquee matchups in primetime (Lakers vs. Nuggets, Suns vs. Warriors), we turn our attention to the futures market for the 2023-24 season. Here are the top candidates to win the NBA Championship this season and some of the…

The 2023-24 NBA season begins on Tuesday night with two games, and four of the top six teams in the NBA Finals odds will be playing in those matchups. For NBA fans, the season can't come soon enough after we saw a crazy 2022-23 season that saw the second eight seed in NBA history (the Miami Heat) make the NBA Finals. Entering this season, I am…

Last season, Joel Embiid repeated as NBA scoring champion on the way to finally winning MVP honors after consecutive runner-up finishes to Nikola Jokic. It marked the 13th time in NBA history that someone led the league in scoring in back-to-back seasons. Of those 13 instances, a second straight scoring title was followed by a third in a row nine…

Now that talks between the Portland Trailblazers and the Miami Heat are beginning to stall, more teams are making trade offers to the Trailblazers in hopes of acquiring seven-time all-star Damian Lillard. And according to at least one betting site, the Boston Celtics have a good chance at striking a deal. The gambling website BetOnline released…

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum attempted to recruit Portland Trail Blazers standout Damian Lillard to Beantown this offseason amid ongoing trade rumors. Lillard's preferred team to play for is the Miami Heat. Andscape's Marc J. Spears said on the Sports by Northwest podcast with Bill Oram that Tatum called Lillard in an attempt to convince him to…

LAS VEGAS - The Boston Celtics are betting favorites with+700 odds to win the first NBA In-Season Tournament beginning on November 3. The Denver Nuggets have+900 odds to win the tournament despite cruising to a 2023 NBA Finals victory. USA online sportsbooks list odds for all 30 teams for the NBA In-Season Tournament.

The NBA world awaits the eventual Damian Lillard and James Harden trades. Well, let's make it 2-for-1 and involve both in the same deal. James Harden's trade standoff with the Philadelphia 76ers is at a momentary standstill, no matter how vociferously he calls for change in the media. The same can be said for Damian Lillard with the Portland Trail…

New Orleans Pelicans basketball star Zion Williams is facing a social media barrage from a scorned former lover following his announcement that he is expecting a child with his current girlfriend. On June 6th, Williamson and his girlfriend, simply known as Ahkeema, posted a gender reveal party video on YouTube, notifying his fans that they'll be…

We're over halfway through the 2022-23 NBA season, and the Western Conference playoff race is aboslutely insane. Just six games seperate the No. 3 seed from the No. 13 seed, which should make for a fun race for play-in tournament spots this season. However, atop the conference the Memphis Grizzlies (10 straight wins) and Denver Nuggets (six…

The NBA MVP race is in its early stages, but like Rudolph's red nose, the league's biggest stars have a chance to shine on Christmas. The league has five marquee matchups scheduled for the holiday. Between two playoff rematches and three additional intra-conference contests, the stage is set for top players to bolster their MVP case. Before those…

If you're looking for an edge in NBA MVP betting, ESPN just dropped one in the form of a straw poll conducted from Sunday to Tuesday. One hundred league insiders cast their ballots on who they would vote for, and Jayson Tatum came out as the early favorite with 47 first-place votes and 759 total points. He was followed by Giannis Antetokounmpo, who…

The New Orleans Pelicans have had a great start to the season, with a 12-8 record after 20 games that is good for the 3rd seed in the competitive Western Conference. The Pels have done it in a variety of ways, as they have had five different players lead them in scoring, and they've done it in the paint as well as from the 3-point line. And this is…

After a tantalizing opening night, we've got a loaded NBA betting board tonight. That means plenty of player props available for us to find the best value and we've done just that, highlighting KAT and Portland's former backcourt. Yesterday was opening night for the 2022-2023 NBA season but it was just an appetizer. We get a full buffet on…

Giannis Antetokounmpo is playing like he wants a third MVP award. The Milwaukee Bucks superstar is off to a strong start this season as is his Milwaukee Bucks.The Bucks are the only remaining unbeaten team in the NBA and they continued to roll with a 116-91 win over the Detroit Pistons. After 7 games played this season, Antetkounmpo is averaging…

Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard started the 2022-23 NBA season on fire, and it's beginning to show in the MVP betting odds. After four straight wins that saw Lillard score 41 points in back-to-back games, followed by Player of the Week honors, his odds have shortened from+6600 to+2500, according to The Athletic's Cole Huff. Jayson Tatum…

Another NBA season has started and the fight for the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy has begun. Read along for NBA season predictions from The Commonwealth Times sports staff after an interesting offseason filled with trades and re-signings. Arrick Wilson's prediction The Golden State Warriors will be the last team standing, winning the…

New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson was a dark horse NBA MVP pick over the summer, but he's now among the favorites for the award. Williamson's MVP odds opened at+6000 back in June, and he's now got the ninth-best odds (+1800) at Caesars Sportsbook to win it. The odds have continued to shift toward Williamson being a true MVP threat, as he…

Nikola Jokic won the MVP award in each of the last two seasons, but he has just the fifth-best odds to win the award again in 2022-23. Check out our top NBA MVP picks and predictions below. History isn't on Joker's side, as the last player to win three consecutive MVPs was Larry Bird when he did it from 1984-86. If Jokic doesn't become the fourth…

Many a national pundit has already written off the Portland Trail Blazers this coming season, suggesting they may even struggle to reach the Play-In tournament. The predictions might be fair. But there's a still plenty of talent on this roster, led by six-time All Star Damian Lillard who, after recovering from abdominal surgery, could be poised to…

Who will lead the NBA in points in 2022? originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia Joel Embiid? Giannis Antetokounmpo? Luka Dončić? Whichever player you choose, there's a compelling case that one of them will stuff the stat sheet with points during the 2022-23 NBA regular season. Last season, Embiid led all players in points per game at 30.6,…

The NBA's decision-makers respond to 50 different questions in the annual survey. In last season's NBA App GM Survey, the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks were not the favorite to repeat. Instead, the favorite was the Brooklyn Nets - the team that had just lost to the Bucks in Game 7 of the conference semifinals. This year, the Bucks lost in Game…

As the Philadelphia 76ers' charter bus wiggled around The Citadel campus and down the Avenue of Remembrance, the players and coaches couldn't help but notice an anomaly amid the military features. The sign outside the school's Starbucks on Sept. 27 advertised Open Mic Night. None of the 76ers took part. They were too busy auditioning for a…

The 2022-23 NBA season will mark 45 years since the Portland Trail Blazers were home of the league MVP. Bill Walton's 1977-78 season marks the only MVP campaign in franchise history, but could Damian Lillard grab the second this year? According to the DraftKings Sportsbook, Lillard holds+5000 odds, good for 14th in the NBA. Those ahead of Lillard…